Budd Bay Cafe

On Sunday my husband and I went to Budd Bay Cafe in Olympia for lunch. They were easy to find and in downtown Olympia on the water. We arrived at 2:30 and were seated immediately. The restaurant was clean with a beautiful view of the water. Our waitress was named Kim and incredibly friendly.

She suggested the strawberry lemonade and I agreed that sounded wonderful. My husband ordered water. We ordered the steamed clams for an appetizer and while we were waiting she brought us warm homemade sourdough rolls.

When the clams came out they were steamed in a garlic white wine chardonnay sauce with carrots and celery. Then, surprisingly, they also had almonds sprinkled them and they gave a very satisfying texture. The clams were also well cooked and not chewy or undercooked. The portion size was also quite large, especially for a lunch appetizer.

I ordered seafood Alfredo for my main course and it came with clams, shrimp, and scallops. I was thrilled to find there was a lot of seafood in the pasta and they did not skimp because it was lunch time. My husband ordered blackened salmon with roasted asparagus and bell peppers and a side of Yukon gold mashed potatoes. He said his salmon was moist and delicious. (after letting me taste it I agreed!)

The price was really acceptable also.

Strawberry Lemonade = $2.95

Steamed Clams= $13.00

Blackened Salmon= $13.00

Seafood Alfredo= $13.00

Total= $ 45.53 (before tip)

When reading the menu I was surprised to read that all of their burgers as 1/2 pound of all natural beef with no antibiotics, steroids, growth hormones, or bi-products. Their oysters are local when they are in season. The salmon is all farm-raised in British Columbia.

Farrelli's Pizza

I ordered takeout from Farrelli's Wood Fire Pizza, 4870 Yelm Highway Southeast, Lacey, WA. It's located in the Safeway shopping center at Yelm Hwy and College Street.

I ordered a 12 inch Fawaiian Pizza, with an "F" not an "H". The cost was $14.49 before tax and tip. Farrelli's describes it as their "'classic pizza' loaded with Canadian Bacon, mozzarella / Provolone and sweet pineapple is a sure "Apple Fired" hit." The crust was hand tossed with the taste and consistency of Naan Bread from the Middle East. It was very good. The marinara sauce was tangy and delicious. The Canadian Bacon had cooled some, but that is likely just due to the length of the drive home. The pineapple was plentiful and sweet.

I polished off this pizza in about 15-20 minutes once I arrived home. This would be a good pizza for two for a lunch, or a large meal for one. If you are a light eater, then I do not recommend trying to eat this pizza in one sitting by yourself.

Overall, I would have to rate this pizza as a B+ on the takeout scale. The dining-in scale would give this pizza an A.

Pizza represents a reward to me. It's not often that I eat pizza anymore, so when I do, I order good pizza, and I enjoy it. This restaurant is one of five in the Farrelli's chain. In my opinion, Farrelli's does a better job of making pizza than any of the nationwide chains, whether it's dine-in, takeout or delivery. I would rather support local business in these tough economic times, and when the local guy has better food than the national guys, we both win.

Bread

Sometimes you want to sit to a good meal of steaks, crab cakes and just plain bread. Last week at Budd Bay café, my husband and I shared one of those moments.
I had the following:
Baseball cut petite top sirloin 6 oz
asparagus
Caesar salad
Baked potato with sour cream and chives and bacon
Bread rolls

My husband had:

3 Dungeness crab cakes with roasted bell pepper sauce
Rice pilaf
Asparagus
Clam chowder
Bread rolls

Needless to say we enjoyed ourselves and were filled with the quiet glazed over calm that settles when one’s belly is happily full.

Which, when contemplating scrumptious food or just any topic related to food in general, brings me to another matter— this question actually: What makes a yummy meal a nutritious meal and how can we eat for our health? Just how much food should one ingest for a meal, or better yet, for an entire day? And what types of foods constitute healthy eating choices? MyPyramid.gov recommends that adults, depending on their activity level intake anywhere from 1,600-2,200 calories. The food guide pyramid also recommends daily servings from the vegetable, fruit, milk and cheese, meat and fish and bean, and bread and pasta food groups. What is striking about these recommendations is the diversity and range of food stuffs we see here. Perhaps the old adage “a little bit of everything” is the best advice. Bread anyone?

Red Robin

On April 19th, 2010 (my birthday), I went to Red Robin. This is typically a very busy restaurant since it is on the west side of Olympia, right next to the mall. When I went there, there was a short line but things were moving pretty quick. I wasn't even waiting for 5 minutes until I was seated. When I looked around, I saw a bunch of people and the employees singing happy birthday to groups. I didn't want them to sing to me so I didn't let anyone know it was my birthday.
Once I was seated, the waitress came right up and asked us if we wanted any drinks or appetizers. I was with my girlfriend so I decided we could share some mozzarella sticks. As busy as it was I was expecting it to be a while until I would get my drinks and appetizer. The mozzarella sticks and drinks were on my table in about 4 minutes. I ordered a prime rib dip for my meal and my girlfriend ordered the gourmet burger. Our meals came out in pretty good time but it wasn't until I started eating that I finally had a problem. The table we sat at was a little two person booth. I have fairly broad shoulders so I found it difficult to manage eating in a tight spot. My meal was prime rib with onions on a French bread roll with a side of garlic fries and coleslaw. I finished my prime rib dip very quickly and then got to the garlic fires. It was all delicious but I had become full because of the mozzarella sticks before. My girlfriend couldn't finish her burger either. Although my meal tasted very good, I found the fries to be greasy. I typically don't eat greasy food so it was hard on my stomach.
When the waitress brought out the bill, I noticed that book the bill was kept in was also a dessert menu. My first thought was, good marketing idea. Then, this made me realize how our American culture is used to large amounts of food and very unhealthy food. It is nice to eat out every once in a while but I couldn't eat like this every day. When I got back to my dorm I had to take a nap because I was so full. Another downfall of this restaurant is that it is a little bit on the pricey side. For just my girlfriend and I the bill came to $32.63 and I left a tip on top of that. It isn't that much money but just for two people it seems kind of expensive. All in all, my outing made me realize that our culture spends a lot of money on large meals that are nothing more than grease.